Iran has suspended oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz following Israeli strikes on Lebanon.
According to Iran’s Fars News Agency, Tehran has halted the passage of oil tankers through the strategic waterway after Israel carried out military operations against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif earlier said Lebanon was included in a ceasefire involving Israel, the United States and Iran. US President Donald Trump later said the ceasefire did not apply to Lebanon, a statement supported by Israeli authorities.
Fars reported that only a limited number of oil tankers have been allowed to transit the Strait of Hormuz since the ceasefire came into effect.
The disruption comes despite a two-week ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran, reached hours before Trump’s deadline for Tehran to reopen the strait on Tuesday evening. Trump has warned that the failure to do so could result in the destruction of a “whole civilization.”
Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, said Tehran would approach future negotiations with Washington cautiously, noting that nuclear talks held before the war had produced no result, as reported by NBC.
“Because of that reason, everything is now temporary. Even the arrangements for the Strait of Hormuz is temporary,” Bahreini said.
Iran continues to exert control over the strait by requiring vessels to coordinate passage with Iranian armed forces, drastically reducing commercial traffic and leaving ships waiting near the waterway.
Traffic through the passage remains restricted amid continuing fighting in Lebanon and uncertainty over the durability of the ceasefire.